


Avengers Soulmate AUs

by Starling_Strider



Category: Captain America (Movies), Iron Man (Movies), The Avengers (Marvel Movies), Thor (Movies)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Soulmates, And Clint and Natasha's, And basically all the uncommon ones, Bruce Banner Needs a Hug, Clint Barton Feels, Clint Barton Needs a Hug, Clintasha - Freeform, Everyone Needs Hugs, F/M, Feelings of Inadequacy, Female Clint, Female Clint Barton, Female Tony, Female Tony Stark, Friendship, FrostIron - Freeform, Hulkeye - Freeform, I hate tags, I have seen controversy over this name, Iron Widow - Freeform, IronHawk - Freeform, Lots of people are Soulmates, M/M, Male-Female Friendship, Non-Canon Relationship, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Platonic Soulmates, Science Boyfriends, Soulmates, That's what I'm calling Tony and Natasha's ship, Tony Feels, Tony Stark Needs a Hug, What is Thor and Tony's Ship name?, Why is Natasha's last name spelt so many different ways?, winterhawk - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-05-29
Updated: 2017-08-22
Packaged: 2018-04-01 19:10:40
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 18
Words: 19,859
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4031326
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Starling_Strider/pseuds/Starling_Strider
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Just a bunch of soulmate aus that got stuck in my head. Wrote them down so I could focus on other stuff. I ship almost every Avenger with almost every Avenger so yeah. Hopefully, someone likes them.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Bruce/Tony

Tony stared down at the name on the bottom of his foot. It was in a perfect scrawl, just legible enough for him to read, and it was as black as ink like all Words were. Soulmate words. The first words your Soulmate would ever say to you. And Tony had his on his foot. He hoped that didn't say anything about the relationship he may someday have. If he ever decided to seek out the man. And Tony knew it was a man too. Because, by some random stroke of luck, Tony's Words were his Soulmate's name.

Bruce Banner.

For a long time, Tony hadn't even cared about the name on his foot. It was just there, a constant reminder of not only society's expectations but what could be. But Tony, despite all his confidence and bravado, didn't think he needed a Soulmate. No, that was wrong. He didn't think he  _deserved_  one. He knew how messed up he was. The whole world knew how messed up he was. Hell,  _God himself_  knew how messed up he was and Tony didn't even believe in him. He drank too much, slept around despite the fact he knew what his Soulmate's name was, did reckless stupid things for the sake of being reckless and stupid. He wasn't fit to be someone's Soulmate. Besides, he didn't really believe in them. His parents had been Soulmates and look how that had ended up. No, Tony definitely didn't think he deserved a Soulmate and he was certain as hell he wouldn't know how to have one anyways if he did ever meet the man.

Of course, that didn't stop him from looking him up anyways.

It turned out, there were exactly eight Bruce Banners in the whole world. Tony was, admittedly, a little shocked by the low number but at the same time he was sort of relieved. It meant it'd be easier to find out which one was his Soulmate. He had Jarvis run searches for any and all available pictures of the eight before anything else, to see if they had any visible Words. He quickly ruled out four of them, their Words were all visible which didn't match up at all. Soulmates always had their Words in the same places. He eliminated another one simply by looking at them. The kid was five. Even the universe understood age gaps so that one was out. Which left three Bruce Banners. Three men that could be his Soulmate.

One of them was a teacher in Idaho. Nice man as far as anyone knew but further look into the man revealed he had a major gambling problem and was dating a con artist of a woman who had divorced her Soulmate (a rarity in this world, though considering her hobbies it wasn't that surprising). Tony didn't much like the sound of him but, really, who was he to judge? The next one was a married man in Delaware but many people got married without meeting their Soulmates, thinking they'll never actually meet them (people are wrong in thinking this, the Words are spoken eventually, everyone meets their Soulmate, but some people just never notice because their words are common or they never get the chance to get to know the person). Tony liked this one a little more. He was a good man who helped his community but he seemed happy with his wife and, if he turned out to be Tony's Soulmate, Tony would never break up an actually happy marriage.

Then there was the last man and, despite the fact that Tony knew he'd avoid his Soulmate at all costs when he figured out exactly which one he was, he severely hoped that this man was him. Because not only was this Bruce a genius but he was also noted (on the internet of course) to have a subtle dry humor that Tony just knew he'd love. He was a nuclear physicist too, definitely someone Tony could talk to. Tony immediately started digging into his past, wanting to know everything about the man even if he turned out to not be his Soulmate because seriously it would be amazing to work with this guy. But the second he saw the type of life this Bruce had lived he knew he could never meet the man. This Bruce's life had been awful. Worse than his own. And there was no way Tony was going to mess up this man's life anymore by adding him to the mix.

So Tony decided to avoid all of them, even going so far as to avoid the states they were in as much as possible. He even moved to California to avoid the last Bruce who lived in Ohio. If some nights he stared at their pictures (the last always getting the longest stare)…well, that was no one's business but his own.

***

Bruce stared down at the name on the bottom of his foot. It was in a scrawl but it was a fancy sort of scrawl, cursive with a long flourish at the end. It was slanted too, like he who wrote it was in a hurry. Bruce traced it with his finger, a frown on his face. He didn't know why he continued to look at the thing. At the name on his foot. At his Words. It wouldn't matter anyways. He was never going to meet him. And, even if he did, he was pretty sure the relationship wouldn't end well. The placement of the Words said everything.

No, Bruce had absolutely no desire to meet Tony Stark.

Why would he? He knew he and his Soulmate would never work out. How did he know? Because of what happened to his parents. His father had killed his mom, his Soulmate, in a drunken rage. He'd bashed her head so hard off the ground that he'd killed her. And Bruce was his father's son. That alone was enough to convince Bruce he should never meet his Soulmate. Because he had his father's DNA in him and he was sure, despite the science, that he was a monster because of that. If he were to ever meet his Soulmate he would just destroy them like his father destroyed his. It didn't help either that his father had told him for years that he wasn't good enough for a Soulmate.

Yes, Bruce knew he would never meet his Soulmate. But he decided to try and find him. Strictly for scientific purposes, of course. And to avoid him as much as possible. Because of course he didn't want to meet his Soulmate. Of course he didn't.

Unfortunately, there was a great deal of Tony Stark's in the world. Luckily, Bruce knew quite a few people who could narrow down his field of research. Discreet people who he lied to saying that he was looking for his cousin who had crippling case of social anxiety and needed help. (He timed it perfectly really, as a new study had just come out about how a Soulmate could very well cure the mental ailments of their other half. Bruce didn't believe the study of course but people romanticized Soulmates and Words so much that it had quickly become a popular theory and thus easy to use.) They quickly ruled out all of those with visible Words then all those with known Words. Afterwards they ruled out certain age groups, including all those ten years younger and older than "his cousin." That left about six. Three women whose official names (not just nicknames) were spelled with Ys and three men. Bruce looked into all of them immediately. He quickly ruled out the women as two just happened to announce the marriage to their Soulmates and the third's Soulmate had died. He quickly came down to two men as well as the third finally broke down, after being bugged by the media for years (he was a celebrity), and admitted that his Soulmate had died.

One of the men was a young athlete in Florida. He was training to be in the Olympics. Bruce frowned when he read about him because if that was his Soulmate he definitely didn't want to meet him. He had so much to live for, so potential. Bruce didn't want to ruin him. Now the second one, Bruce didn't think he could ruin him very much. It was the famous Tony Stark, the CEO of Stark Industries, and everyone knew pretty much everything about him. He was an alcoholic, a womanizer, a reckless idiot who was squandering his father's company.

Or at least that's what the papers said. It didn't take Bruce long to look past the papers and see so much more.

Tony Stark was an alcoholic but his father had been too. Tony Stark was Howard's prodigy but there was worrisome low number of pictures of the two actually together. Tony Stark was reckless but why shouldn't he be when he seemed to have no one? Tony Stark was a womanizer but of course he would be, what with his parents apparently only together twice a year (if the pictures were to be trusted) he surely didn't have a great idea of relationships growing up. And God forbid, why did the newspapers always forget this, Tony Stark was  _smart_. He was more than smart. He was a freaking  ** _genius_**. And yet all the papers seemed to care about was who the man had slept with. It enraged Bruce to no end and he found himself wishing the man was his Soulmate so he could tell him that he was a genius and the man know he truly meant it. But then Bruce remembered he didn't  _want_ —no, he didn't  _deserve_ —a Soulmate. And he stopped thinking about Tony Stark. Both of them.

And if sometimes he found himself looking up how they were doing (paying just a bit too much attention to the second one)…well, that was no one's business but his own.

***

Tony wasn't sure what he hated more, business parties or the fact that this particular one was forcing scientists who obviously didn't want to come to show up and pretend to be having a good time. It'd been the Board's idea. They were trying to get more scientists working for them and they thought a party displaying their wealth would be the best way to do it. Of course they also expected Tony and a few of their best scientists to go so they could help push the potentials into their corner with promises of sleek, shiny, new technology. Tony let out a sigh, he'd decided. He definitely hated this type of business party more than regular business parties.

Pepper was saying something but Tony wasn't paying attention. He was too busy thinking up how to improve Jarvis's coding. So when Pepper grabbed his arm and started pulling him along he barely noticed, just let her drag him along as if she was his nanny. Which really wasn't fair to her, one of his trains of thought thought. Pepper should be with her Soulmate, a man named Phil Coulson she'd met through the company, not dragging Tony around. He knew Phil was around here somewhere. Maybe he should send her away. He could entertain himself by finding a young blonde thing and talking to her while…Oh. Tony's mind completely stopped at the sight before him. Through the crowd, barely teen feet away, was  _him_. Bruce Banner. The third one. The genius. And oh God how the hell hadn't Tony noticed that he was on the guest list?!

Tony felt his heart rate pick up. He couldn't quite breath and his vision narrowed down so that the only person he could see was him. Bruce. His Bruce, he could tell. He wasn't sure how but he could tell. And Pepper was leading him towards him.

***

Bruce hated parties like this. But his people had forced him to come. Something about broadening his horizons or at least giving them all a good review in the hopes of getting funded. Bruce shook his head at the thought of the argument he'd had with them trying to keep himself from going. None of them had listened and of course he couldn't tell them his real reason as to why he didn't want to go. Telling someone you didn't want to risk possibly meeting your Soulmate was social suicide. Because who didn't want to meet their Soulmate? Bruce rolled his eyes at the thought before casting a look around to see if he could spot the man that may very well be his Soulmate. He didn't want to risk running into him. He really didn't want to. So, hopefully, the rumors were true and Tony Stark rarely showed up to these things.

After a while, Bruce deemed it safe to start socializing. He couldn't spot Tony Stark anywhere and figured he was okay, at least for a while. Besides, he doubted that anyone would introduce him to the man if he was there. He really wasn't the most interesting, important, or influential scientist there. Tony Stark would have much more important things to do than meet him.

He was wrong. When he turned back around again after picking a drink off of a tray, he saw him. Tony. His Tony. He wasn't sure how but he could tell. And the man was heading right towards him.

***

For a second, Tony considered the idea of running. He seriously gave it extensive thought, even going so far as to plan an escape route. But then Bruce's eyes met his and he just couldn't run. He couldn't. Because for years he'd been checking up on this Bruce, following his studies, and he was completely enraptured with the man. Soulmate or not, Tony was going to meet him.

Pepper started to introduce him but Tony held up a hand, cutting her off. He pulled away from her slowly, approaching the man with a calm collected expression. Bruce wore one almost exactly like his except his eyes darted more, taking in Tony completely. Both men knew their expressions were lies though. Inside they were both, admittedly, terrified. Here they were, possibly about to meet their Soulmate. The Soulmate they had never wanted to meet. But they couldn't turn away now. Couldn't run away knowing they could discover one of the biggest mysteries of their lives in just moments. It was scientific curiosity, they told themselves. Nothing more.

Tony held out his hand. "Tony Stark." He said simply. The blood rushed out of his face.

Bruce took his hand. "Bruce Banner." He said. His free hand tightened into a fist.

Bruce felt it before Tony did. The warmth that surrounded his Words, alerting him that he had indeed met his Soulmate. It didn't burn but Bruce still couldn't help the small quiet gasp that escaped his lips as he realized exactly what it was. A second later Tony's breath hitched in his throat. He'd felt it too. And later, when they got the chance to, they'd check their Words and find them a beautiful red color that showed the words had been said. Tony looked down at his foot for a second but a split second later his eyes were back on Bruce. And despite the fact that Tony never wanted to meet Bruce and Bruce never wanted to meet Tony, the pair smiled at each other.

"Come on Doctor, let's talk." Tony said, gesturing towards the bar where there were still a few empty seats and they could have at least some form of privacy.

"Sure. You know anything about gamma rays?" Bruce asked. He couldn't help feeling delighted when Tony's smile grew and he started leading him towards the bar.

Neither man noticed they were still holding hands.

Pepper did. But she didn't say anything. Just smiled and went to find Phil.


	2. Natasha/Clint

One of the first things they teach you in the Red Room is that when you find your Soulmate, you kill them. No thought, no mercy. Just kill them instantly. A Soulmate is weakness and there can be no weakness. Natasha Romanoff had seen girls from the Red Room with angry purple Words. They'd been considered some of the best. The elite. Because they'd battled Fate itself and came out on top. They'd killed their Soulmates. Funny enough though, their very best girl still had black Words when she left. Yes, the infamous Black Widow had never met her Soulmate.

She didn't want one of course. They were weakness. That was one thing the Red Room had actually gotten right. She'd seen world leaders feared by millions go soft just in the presence of their Soulmate. She'd seen regimes fall because of Soulmates getting in the way. She'd seen men and women die for a person they hardly knew because when they'd spoken to them their Words had gone red. Soulmates were weaknesses. And Natasha never planned on having one. It seemed too that that wish would come true. The second SHIELD started hunting her, she knew it would be over soon. All of it. Everything. Her. SHIELD would kill her and she'd never have to meet her Soulmate. Thankfully.

They'd sent a young agent to take her out. Natasha had been insulted the first time she'd caught sight of him. He couldn't have been any older than twenty five and he was carrying a bow. A bow. Not a useless weapon but who ever heard of using a bow to kill someone? Natasha didn't underestimate him though. She took off the second she realized he was there and didn't see him again for weeks. Unfortunately, that was when she realized that she'd only not seen him because he hadn't wanted to be seen. He'd been following her. Watching her. Well, Natasha had finally had enough. He'd collected enough information on her, she thought. It was about time he tried to kill her. And if he didn't succeed well then SHIELD would know to send a more experienced one next time. So Natasha sat down at a table right in the open, leaving herself completely exposed to all types of unfriendly fire, and she waited. Either he would shoot or he'd join her.

He joined her. He sat down across from her while she looked over the café's menu. She didn't so much as glance at him when she said "So, you've finally caught up with me." She spoke in Russian. She hoped that the last words she ever spoke were completely incomprehensible to the man.

Something about how the man suddenly stiffened made Natasha set the menu down and stare right at him. She watched as he placed a hand to his ribs for a half second, a completely unconscious action if she was reading him right. Then he pressed his lips together just slightly, as if he was steeling his nerves, and he spoke. "You don't have to do this anymore." He spoke Russian. He even had the accent right.

Natasha's whole body ran cold the second the words came out of his mouth. And then there was warmth. Natasha felt her Words changing from black to red and she couldn't believe her luck. Her horrible luck. She cursed and the man before her smirked with amusement. He seemed shaken but at the same time he seemed overjoyed. He leaned across the table and looked her dead in the eye. Natasha stared back and she couldn't help feeling a sort of twisted satisfaction that her Soulmate could hold her gaze. And that she blinked first.

The next words he spoke were free of stiffness, of formality, of any form of social distancing whatsoever. Instead, he sounded casual. Like they were talking about the weather. "My name's Clint Barton and, like I said, you don't have to do this anymore. How would you like to be a part of SHIELD?" Natasha raised an eyebrow at him but Clint Barton didn't seem bothered. In fact, he looked smug. Like he'd already won.

Looking at him, Natasha felt like maybe he already had.


	3. Claire/Bruce

Claire didn't know why she was doing this. Following after dumb old Stark to some dumb old lab to meet some dumb old scientist. She didn't need to be tested! She knew how good her vision was, how smart she was, how talented she was. She didn't want to be Tony's little lab rat for him and his friend (the scientist they were going to meet) to play with. She never should have agreed to that first eye scan. That's what had set this whole thing in motion. Because Tony had been convinced there was absolutely no way she could have nailed the professor with a paper football from the very back of the room and Claire had been determined to prove him wrong. So he'd scanned her eyes and when they came up normal he'd scanned them again. And again. And again until she finally told him to stop or soon she wouldn't have the normal eyesight he was trying to study.

After that he'd made her do math. For hours. Claire didn't know why he was doing it but she went along with it. By the end of it Stark was staring at her like she was a freak. His mouth had hung open and his eyes had gone wide. He'd looked sort of like a fish and Claire had told him as much, still standing in front of the board where Tony had written a long as hell equation she'd figured out the answer to without having to write a single thing down. It'd only taken her a few seconds. She wondered, briefly, if that was why he'd stared at her like that but she quickly dismissed the idea. There was no way Tony was surprised by her math. Lots of people were good at math. There was nothing special about her besides her shooting. Not even her reflexes which Tony had tested for hours as well, randomly throwing things at her every time he saw her. Seemingly done with that, he was now leading her to meet his "Science Bro" so they could test just how good at archery she was. So yeah, that was how she'd ended up following after Tony towards the campus labs. All because of that stupid scan. And she seriously had no clue why she'd agreed to do this.

"You know Tony, I've got better things to do than follow you around and be tested on." Claire said, shooting the back of her friend's head an annoyed look. How she'd ended up with this dork as her friend she would never know. It'd just sort of happened. One day Claire was complaining about Tony Stark and his trust fund and the next she was fighting him over how he so totally cheated at Halo  _dammit Tony, I saw you!_  and getting late night pizzas with him. Tasha had been right too, being friends with Tony was going to be her downfall.

"Yeah like what? Finding your Soulmate?" Tony asked jokingly, flashing her his usual wicked grin.

Claire rolled her eyes. "No, something much more important." She said, crossing her arms over her chest as best she could with her compound bow in her hand. Tony let out a snort and Claire grinned wildly. Usually no one ever found her anti-Soulmate jokes amusing but Tony did and Claire loved it. It was nice having someone around who didn't get uncomfortable or argue with her when she revealed she didn't really believe in Soulmates. Seriously, people got really pissed off whenever she made her opinion on the whole Soulmate/Words thing known. She'd even been put in the hospital over it once. Big mistake on their part. Claire still didn't know what exactly Natasha did to them when she got ahold of them. All she knew was that now none of them could so much as look at her. Or walk straight. And one of them wasn't able to write anymore without a special brace on his hand.

"Mmm, what are your words again? Something stupid right?" Tony asked, slowing down so he could walk beside her and properly tease her. Claire had to resist glaring at him a bit. Once Tony started in on you things could get real annoying real fast. Oh well, at least she was taller and stronger than him. That didn't mean anything when he was annoying her, it was just something she enjoyed holding over his head. Which she'd done once. She wrote it on a paper and held it over his head, snatching it away from his hands when he'd tried to grab it from her. It'd been hilarious.

"Not as stupid as yours, Metal Head." Claire said, almost defensively. Cause she may not believe in the whole Soulmate thing but she'd be damned if someone mocked something that was a part of her skin. Immediately, she started rubbing at the thick black letters on her arm.  **Well, that didn't go the way I expected**. Claire frowned down at them. Of course her Words would be somewhere obvious and have negative connotations. God, she hated them. How many times had she had to endure people's theories on her Words? It was so annoying. Even worse if the person knew her standing on Words and Soulmates because then they'd say that she  _had_  to believe in the whole Soulmate thing because she had Words. How can she have Words and  _not_  believe in all of it? Easy, Claire thought. Use common fucking sense. Don't let some random ass stranger change your whole life because they said a couple of words the universe decided to tattoo on your arm. Or God. Or Fate. Or whatever. Whoever was in charge of this sort of thing could very well just be a dick who wants to mess with everyone. So why would Claire listen to them?

"Hey, I'll have you know that my words are beautiful. 'Don't be a dick' is a beautiful phrase for your Soulmate to tell you." Tony said dramatically. Claire let out a very unladylike snort at that and Tony grinned in triumph as he watched her try to regain her dignity. Of course those weren't his actual words but he'd said them to get her laughing. His actual words were way kinder than that (if they weren't sarcastic) and so damn common he'd heard it about a million times before.  **Thanks, I really appreciate it.** God, Claire was lucky. Her words were uncommon. Even if she didn't believe in the whole Soulmate thing at least she wouldn't have to endure hearing them a million times over before finally hearing it from the right person. "Anyways, you can't get out of this Hawkeye. You owe me for getting you away from Thor's brother." Tony continued on, using the nickname he'd given her when he'd first found out how good her eyes were.

Claire let out a loud groan at the very mention of Thor's brother. "Alright, you've got a point. I'll stop complaining." She conceded. It'd really been very kind of Thor to get her away from the other boy. Loki was an absolute creep and he hadn't been leaving her alone at one of the dorm parties. So Tony had swept in and distracted Loki so she could escape. He really was a good friend. So yeah she definitely owed him.

"Good. Now come on, labs are just there." Tony said, grabbing her arm while he pointed to the nearest building. Claire forced back another groan and let him drag her there.

The labs were actually really boring. Or at least Claire thought so. Just a bunch of nerds playing with the same chemicals they were playing with in high school. Tony assured her that not all science was like this, that the engineering labs was way better, but Claire just tuned him out. That is, until he left her in the elevator telling her to go up to the top floor while he talked to someone about something or other. Claire tried to protest but before she could the elevator doors closed and she was sent straight up. It annoyed the crap out of her but she didn't try to go back down to Tony. Maybe she could convince his Science Bro not to go along with his plans if he wasn't there. Maybe.

Bad thing was, she realized, was that she didn't actually know the guy's name. So she ended up standing outside the elevator looking like an idiot until someone finally took pity on her and asked who she was looking for because obviously she wasn't there to work. She had no name to give them but when she said "Tony Stark's Science Bro" they immediately led her towards the other end of that floor, saying that she must be the chick Tony wanted Bruce to meet. Claire glared at the guy for calling her a chick but didn't say anything. She didn't want him to abandon her. Not when she had no clue what this Bruce guy looked like.

They'd gone back quite a few doors before the guy finally pushed one open and led her inside. Claire stared around the lab for a moment, taking it all in, before focusing solely on the one occupant of the room. She couldn't see a lot of him, he had his back towards them, but he had a mop of curly brown hair and a lab coat. He was hunched over a table, doing something she couldn't see. By the way he didn't so much as glance back or even remotely register that they were there, Claire knew this was Tony's guy.

Soon, Claire found herself on the other side of the lab, almost near the man. He still hadn't acknowledged them and that was fine with Claire but apparently not fine with the boy that had escorted her. He spoke up when they were just less than a yard from the other boy. "Hey Banner! We've got a gue—!" He never got to finish. Because suddenly whatever this Bruce Banner was working on exploded and they were blasted right off their feet.

For a second Claire just laid on the ground, her mouth open in a small O of surprise. When she felt a burning sensation on her legs though she quickly sat up, knowing she had to if she didn't want to burn to death. She started swatting at the flames the second she saw them but her hands weren't enough. The flames started licking at her fingers and she quickly pulled her hands away, not wanting to risk harming them in case it kept her from her archery. She looked around for something to smother the flames but she didn't have to look long. In fact, she didn't have to find anything at all. Because the boy who had set her on fire was suddenly kneeling beside her, smothering the flames out with his lab coat.

Claire waited till she was sure the flames were out before looking up into the eyes of Bruce Banner. His absolutely gorgeous brown eyes that shined behind his glasses like there were lights in them. A smile appeared on his face and he let out a soft laugh. "Well, that didn't go the way I expected." He told her, looking like he wasn't bothered by the explosion at all.

For a second Claire didn't quite understand what Bruce had said. Then she felt warmth suddenly spread through her Words (a low good feeling warmth, not a burning one) and it clicked. Bruce had said her Words. Her Words. And they'd turned red. One glance at her arm confirmed that. Her Words were red. Bruce Banner was her Soulmate. Holy shit. "I bet neither did this." She said without thinking, her eyes snapping back up to meet Bruce's. Claire wasn't surprised at all when Bruce's eyes widened almost immediately, he seemed like a smart guy. Of course he'd realize she'd spoken his Words.

"Holy shit." Tony said from the doorway, staring at his friends in shock. He'd been just down the hallway when the lab exploded and he'd taken off running. He'd never expected to find Bruce and Claire staring at each other as if they were seeing the sun for the first time and he definitely didn't expect to hear them say each other's Words. And oh God he'd seen their Words turned red. Holy shit. Holy shit, his friends were Soulmates….Oh shit.

Bruce and Claire turned the second they heard Tony's voice, more out of surprise than anything. But then Claire's eyes narrowed and pure fury appeared on her face.

"Stark! This is all your fault!"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Kind of thinking of making this one into a bigger fic.


	4. Clint/Tony

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Uh so this one is a lot sucky in my opinion. Oh and it may be tiggery cause the baddie in this one is a massive perv and gives off massive rape vibes. Sorry.

If there was one thing about college parties Tony loved, it was the people. Sure they were stupid, especially when they drank, but he liked to listen to the gossip and watch the really drunk and really sad ones going around showing off their Words, lamenting the fact that they still hadn't met their Soulmates. Tony's own Words stood out proudly on his collarbone, still the same black they'd been since he was born. He wasn't even remotely bothered by their color though. He didn't want to meet his Soulmate and he certainly didn't want to meet them at a college party that he wasn't even drunk at. Yeah, unfortunately Rhodey had made him promise not to drink tonight. It was nice having someone concerned about him, he had to admit, but it was kind of annoying too. He was Tony Stark. He could do whatever he damn well pleased. Why did Rhodey have to take all the fun out of the evening by banning alcohol?

Tony watched a drunk girl collapse on the couch and burst into tears, wailing about her Soulmate being upstairs with another girl. A bunch of people immediately got furious, shouting in outrage at her words. Because cheating on your Soulmate was one of the worst crimes you could commit. Tony almost snorted. If that was really true then his father belonged in prison. A guy noticed him smirking and glared at him. Tony rolled his eyes but let out a sigh. That was it. He couldn't handle being glared at over his opinion on Soulmates without at least some level of alcohol in him. So he turned around and reached for the nearest bottle of vodka on the table behind him.

He never got to grab it though. Because suddenly a boy around his age was in his personal space and he couldn't grab the bottle. Tony frowned at the torso now in his line of sight, blocking his sight on the alcohol, and immediately tried to shove the boy out of the way but the kid wouldn't budge. In fact, he reached up and latched onto Tony's shirt so tightly he thought the boy was trying to pull it off. Tony's eyes snapped up to meet the boy's and he opened his mouth to tell the kid off but one look at his face made Tony shut his mouth again. The boy looked terrified. Downright terrified. And that was really messed up because the kid looked like he could take person down with a single punch (he had  _impressive_  arms). What could possibly scare him this much?

"Please pretend to be my boyfriend." The boy begged him the second it looked like he wasn't going to shove him away again. He sounded desperate.

Tony found himself nodding before he'd really realized exactly what the words meant. He just responded to the plea automatically, his heart actually going out to somebody for once and making him want to help immediately. He found himself being spun around the second he nodded and he barely had enough time to register a slight heat on his collar bone before he caught sight of a truly massive guy coming through the crowd right towards him and the boy. Tony realized immediately what was going on and he felt anger start to rise up inside him. If this was really what he thought it was then he was going to end up killing this guy. He didn't know how but he knew that by the end of the night he would have the massive guy on the floor, bleeding from where Tony had broken his nose.

"Clint." The massive guy growled out, staring down at the boy. Up close, Tony could really see how intimidating the guy was. He was somewhere around six foot six and he looked like he was made of pure muscle, every time he moved a million different muscles rippled and veins shot up to press against his skin. He was covered with what looked almost like tribal tattoos that disappeared beneath his black clothing but seemed to cover his entire body. And his eyes were blood red. Definitely from contact lenses but still. He looked terrifying.

Tony glanced over at the boy, Clint, to see how he'd react. To his credit, he didn't look terrified anymore. A bit nervous, yes, but not terrified. "Laufey." He said as calmly as he could, somehow managing to meet the guy's intense gaze.

Tony looked back and forth between them a moment, taking note of how Clint refused to take his eyes off Laufey and how Laufey's eyes swept over Clint's whole body in a way that made Tony sick. It was possessive, like Laufey was looking at one of his possessions, and hungry, like he wanted to bend the kid over the alcohol table and have him there. How Clint wasn't shaking was beyond Tony. And now he understood why he'd asked him to pretend to be his boyfriend. Laufey had obviously been perving on him for a while and Clint wanted it to end. He wanted it to end so badly that he'd even sought out help. Tony's help. There was no way Tony was going to let this continue so he decided to do as Clint had asked him. In a second he had his arm wrapped around Clint's shoulders in a gentle but tender way and his free hand on Clint's abs. Clint's arm came around his waist without thought, thank God, and Tony pressed a soft kiss to the other boy's temple. He smiled when he pulled back, both to fool Laufey and because damn he was good at acting. "You okay, Sweetheart?" He asked Clint in a loving sort of way, like he'd been dating the boy for a while and cared about him deeply.

Clint looked over at the guy and smiled with relief. He was going to help him. He was really going to help him. Thank God. He opened his mouth to reply that he was (lie) but before he could get a sound out, Laufey interrupted him. "Since when are you with him?" The massive man practically snarled at him.

Tony turned and gave Laufey his very best "what the hell is this and why is it here, I'm so disgusted by it" face while Clint tried to figure out what to say. Luckily, Tony already had a reply at the ready. "Sorry, didn't see you there, Lennie Small." He said, using a tone that suggested he really didn't want Laufey to be there. Like he thought Laufey was interrupting something he had no business even being near.

Clint couldn't help it. He let out a laugh. Because comparing Laufey to the guy from Of Mice and Men was freaking hilarious and no one could ever tell him otherwise.

Unfortunately, Clint's laugh pissed Laufey off more than the actual insult. "You think that's funny, bitch?" He snarled down at Clint, taking a step forward. Clint flinched back immediately. Partially because Laufey had taken a step towards him and partially because Laufey had called him bitch. Laufey was very careful with his name calling. He only called people bitch if he considered them his property. And Clint did not want to be Laufey's property.

Tony let out a noise extremely similar to a growl when he felt Clint flinch. "Watch it dickhead." He said warningly, his voice suddenly low with fury. Clint looked over at him in shock. Did…Did this guy not know who Laufey was? He knew he'd asked this guy for help and that's what he was doing but anyone who knew who Laufey was would never call him a name. Also, he had to admit he was a little shocked by the way the guy's voice had gone so deadly. His face was scary now too, like a shadow had passed over it and darkened his expression into one of murder. "I don't like it when people insult what's mine." The guy told Laufey and Clint felt his arm tighten around his shoulders.

Okay, it was official, this guy definitely did not know who Laufey was. Which was bad. Really bad. Because Clint should never have involved someone who had absolutely no clue about Laufey. He thought he'd given the guy a choice to help him but he really hadn't. All this guy knew was that a big guy was threatening a smaller guy. It wasn't fair. Clint was going to get him killed. God, where was Thor? Or Natasha? Or, hell, even Loki? He thought he spotted a head of golden hair among the crowd but he didn't dare call out in case he was wrong. Laufey would be pissed if he drew any attention to them.

"He's not yours, pretty boy." Laufey growled down at Tony. He had this look on his face like a child with anger issues who'd just had his favorite toy stolen on the playground. "He's mine. My property. So fuck off." He told the other boy.

Tony went to hit him. He really did. But suddenly Clint was shoving him back, pushing him into the alcohol table. He didn't hit it hard, only a light clatter filled the air and that was only for a second. A couple of bottles fell but nothing shattered. No extra attention was drawn. Well, actually it had but Tony didn't notice as his eyes snapped back to Clint who was standing protectively in front of him, his hands held up in surrender and his eyes locked on Laufey's.

"Don't. Please, don't, Laufey." Clint said quickly, trying to calm the monster. He wasn't looking at him, he was glaring down at Loki, but Clint knew he was listening. "Please. I'm sorry. I'll come with you, okay? I give up." He said, a desperate note entering his voice. Laufey's eyes snapped down to meet Clint's. He'd been waiting for Clint to say that. For him to give up. And he looked so damn pleased about it. Clint could feel himself shaking slightly but he didn't take it back and he didn't step down. There was no way he was going to let Laufey hurt the nice guy who'd tried to help him. Even if it meant sacrificing his own happiness and, really, his own life. Because the second he became Laufey's he wouldn't be able to do anything. He'd be Laufey's. He'd do as he said.

"Fuck that!" Tony protested immediately, his eyes widening with shock. What was this idiot doing? Hadn't he wanted Tony's help? Why was he giving himself up to this asshole? This dick who was probably a fucking rapist or some shit. Tony couldn't stand it. He tried to go at Laufey again but Clint shoved him back, harder this time. He nearly knocked over the table this time.

Rhodey's voice filled the air a second later, shouting Tony's name with worry and rage. Not rage towards Tony of course but rage towards his attacker. And someone else shouted Clint's name in the exact same way. Tony watched as a massive blonde guy and Rhodey shoved Clint behind them, both getting in Laufey's face. He immediately got to his feet but he didn't try to attack Laufey again. Instead, he wrapped an arm around Clint's shoulders from behind and started pulling him away. Away from Rhodey and whoever the angry bodybuilder blonde guy was. A redheaded girl appeared at his side and started helping him pull Clint along. Soon she was leading, pulling them both towards the back door of the frat house. They let her lead them outside and, once they were out there, they let her look over them silently without saying a word. Both were too wound up to say a word and their minds were way too focused on trying to hear what was going on inside with Laufey for them to speak. Clint felt Natasha tug his shirt collar down past his collarbone and instincts immediately made him focus his attention on her and pull the cloth back into place. Natasha just stared at him a moment before shaking her head.

"Only you would meet your Soulmate this way, Clint."

It took the two boys a second but soon they realized what she meant. They'd met their Soulmates and they hadn't even noticed. Clint looked over at Tony. Tony looked over at Clint.

And they both started laughing so hard they couldn't stand.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I couldn't think of anyone besides Laufey to make into the baddie for this one. So uh yeah this one's a little weird. Oh and I didn't really know how to finish it so if the end seems weak as hell I'm sorry, I was just trying to wrap this one up. I kind of want to make this into a bigger fic but I'm not sure how to do it cause the whole Laufey thing is shit.


	5. Thor/Tony

Thor's Words were common knowledge in Asgard. Normally only a handful would know so they could help search for his Soulmate but since Thor was a prince of Asgard his Words were known by everyone. They stretched down his side, written in slanted cursive, and Thor spent countless hours reading them.  **Then don't touch my stuff.** He didn't know why his Soulmate would say something like that to him and for a while he was offended by them because the only way he ever heard them when he read them was in an annoyed voice. He was also offended by them because they were written in a Midgardian language. At the time, he'd considered Midgard a puny unevolved realm, much like the rest of Asgard did.

But then he met Jane and his whole world change. And he loved her. He did. But his Words did not turn red like his parents' and countless others' had. They stayed a steady black. But that didn't bother Thor. He didn't think he'd meet very many Midgardians so he didn't think he'd ever meet his Soulmate. So maybe he could be with Jane despite the fact that they weren't Soulmates. After the Bifrost collapsed and Thor was capable of seeing past the pain of losing Loki, he thought again about Jane and his Words. With the Bifrost gone there was even less of a chance of him meeting his Midgardian Soulmate. So Thor became determined to be with Jane should he ever get to return to Earth.

Because, really, there was no chance of him meeting his Soulmate.

***

Tony Stark's words were, unfortunately, public knowledge. A lucky paparazzi managed to get a picture of him with his shirt off when he was a kid (he'd been on vacation to the beach) and since then everyone had known what they were. Tony hadn't even cared. He wasn't concerned with finding his Soulmate at the time and he still wasn't, even as an adult. But he had to admit, the words kind of bothered him.  **Do not touch me again.**  He'd only heard those words twice in his life (once they'd even been the first words a stranger had spoken to him) but he didn't have to hear it anymore than that to know that the words were negative in every way. Hell, he had never needed to hear it. From the moment he was old enough to understand them he'd known that they meant he'd done something bad. Maybe that's why he didn't want to meet his Soulmate. Because he knew the first time he met them he would hurt them. And he'd already hurt enough people. He would be happy alone (since Pepper had Phil his dream of falling in love with her had ended).

Sometimes though when he was alone he'd look at those words on his side and wonder who his Soulmate was. His Soulmate who wrote quickly but surprisingly neatly (since all Words were written out the same way a person's Soulmate did). His Soulmate who he would hurt the second he met him.

***

Tony had no problems with knocking the blond guy with the hammer off the mountain. In fact, it was kind of fun. Especially when he got to throw him into the ground. God indeed. Normally, Tony may have thought twice about angering a god but right then he was in too bad a mood to do that. Capsicle had pissed him off and a douchebag with antlers was trying to take over the world. So yeah he was in a bad mood which meant he was going to happily throw around the god until someone stopped him.

Thor didn't hesitate to get back on his feet once he'd stopped sliding. He did not know who had attacked him but it didn't matter. They were trying to keep him from taking Loki back to Asgard and that made them a threat. He would try to be civil though. He had taken Loki from the Metal Man and the other Midgardians without so much as a word to them. They probably thought he was the threat. So when he stood he looked at the man (it was definitely a man, when the metal face lifted it showed a man's face) and spoke calmly. "Do not touch me again." He told the man.

Tony's mind registered the words in half a second and got over them in the next half. "Then don't touch my stuff." He replied easily, giving the god an unimpressed look.

For a second the god paused as shock washed over him. No. No, this couldn't be. This Metal Man who had knocked him from the sky could not be his Soulmate. He was never supposed to meet his Soulmate! He loved Jane, loved her as he'd loved no one before. He could not have found his Soulmate. Especially not among his possible enemies.

Tony understood what was happening the second the god paused. Because there was only one reason the god would pause like that. And only one reason warmth would be spreading through his Words. Tony was the god's Soulmate…..Great. Just Great. His Soulmate was a god. And not just a god but the brother of the guy trying to take over the world. That was awesome. Just his luck….Why? Why the hell did it happen now? Why couldn't he have just died without ever having to meet his Soulmate? Why did it have to be  _this guy_?

Thor didn't know what to do anymore. He wanted to talk to the man. Find out more about him. Find out if he expected anything from Thor like the commitment his parents had. But he couldn't. He had to get Loki home. And find the Tesseract but the most important part of all of this to him was getting Loki home. Thor took a deep unnoticeable breath. His first priority had to be his brother and his realm. Not the Soulmate he had decided he never wanted to meet. "You have no idea what you're dealing with." He told the other man. This time his voice wasn't as mean, wasn't as angry. This time his voice was gentler and Thor hadn't even meant for it to do that. He hadn't wanted it to. He couldn't show the man he was affected by their meeting.

Of course Tony frowned when Thor's voice suddenly went softer. He didn't want the man to treat him any different. Even if they were Soulmates. So he decided to do the one thing he knew best. He made a joke. "Uh, Shakespeare in the park?" He asked, looking around at the trees. Up in the sky he thought he saw something coming down towards the ground and briefly thought the Captain must be joining them. Oh yeah, that'd be great. His Soulmate and his dad's obsession in one place. It'd be like a dream. He looked back down at Thor. He wasn't sure if he saw a reluctant smirk on Thor's face or not but it looked almost like there might be one. "Doth mother know you weareth her drapes?" Tony asked grandly, gesturing towards Thor's cape.

The god almost felt like shaking his head. Were situations different he had a feeling his brother and his Soulmate would get along perfectly. He was just as mocking, just as laid back. And he didn't seem to like being treated with even the slightest hint of gentleness. "This is beyond you, Metal Man." He said. He would have preferred to use his Soulmate's real name but he did not know it. Strange how he knew who the man was and what importance he held but didn't know his name. "Loki will face Asgardian justice." He told his Soulmate firmly.

"He gives up the cube he's all yours. Until then," Iron Man's metal face slid over Tony's, "stay out of the way." He said. With that, he started to turn away. He couldn't help saying something as he walked away though. He was just so annoyed and frustrated and God, seriously, did he have to meet this guy? Did he seriously have to meet him?! And did he seriously have to be a  _god_?! So Tony did something very stupid. He mocked the god by calling him a tourist. Which was how he got freaking smashed by a hammer.

Huh. Apparently he couldn't even insult his Soulmate and get away with it.


	6. Clint/Loki

Clint stared at the bottle on his coffee table, debating whether or not to pick it up and chug the alcohol inside. It'd barely been a month since the attack on New York and he wasn't doing good. He couldn't sleep, he had too many nightmares. Couldn't eat, he felt sick every time he even thought of food. Couldn't even leave his apartment, everything reminded him way too much of what he'd done under Loki's control. When he did sleep he never wanted to wake up and when he woke up he never wanted to move. It was like something was compressing him, keeping him boxed in. In place. He had a theory on what it was too. Most of it had to do with guilt. He thought he hadn't fought hard enough. Hadn't tried to gain control again hard enough. Another part of it was the looming threat of insanity. He already knew Selvig was going insane. How long would it be until he followed? Until he tipped over the edge and could no longer function like a normal person? That wasn't even the worst part of all of it though. There was one last thing that he knew was weighing him down. One last thing that was worse than everything else.

His Words, that had been black as night before all of this, were now red.

**You have heart.**

Clint shuddered every time he looked at the words resting in the right side of the v of his hips. He remembered how they'd sounded coming from that monster's mouth. And he remembered feeling the warmth that spread through his Words just before Loki touched the scepter to his heart. Then he'd been cold. So very cold. And God he hated Loki so much.

God, just….Just God. He couldn't…He couldn't do this. He couldn't handle this. Knowing that that bastard was his Soulmate. The man who'd enslaved him. The man who'd killed his fellow agents. Killed citizens. Had tried to  _take over the fucking world_! And he was his Soulmate. God…God. What was he going to do? What in hell was he going to do? He couldn't survive this. Couldn't.

Of course he would though. He always survived, even when he thought he couldn't. Even when he didn't even want to. Somehow he always survived. First it'd been Barney who took care of him. Then it'd been Phil. Then Phil and Natasha. And oh dear God,  _Phil_. Loki had killed Phil. His Soulmate had killed the one man Clint thought he could be happy with despite what the universe wanted. No, no. There had to be a mistake. Loki couldn't be his Soulmate. He couldn't. Someone else Loki put under his control must have said it. They must have heard it and mocked him or something. There was no way Loki could be his Soulmate.

But of course he was. Of course he was. Because after Clint had first spoken to him, after he'd finished the first sentence he'd ever said to Loki, the god had stiffened. He'd gotten this look on his face like he couldn't believe something and like he was completely and totally disgusted. He'd lost the expression quickly of course, making his face blank again, but it'd been there. It'd been there and Clint, even under someone else's control, had known exactly what it meant.

Fuck it. He was going to drink.


	7. Clint/Phil

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow this got noticed really quickly. Damn. Thanks :D! 
> 
> To my four commenters: kweandee, thank you! YokuMiya, yeah she knew them :). jkbat, thanks so much and their words were "Please pretend to be my boyfriend" and "You okay, Sweetheart". eskarina, thanks so much and I actually may end up continuing it but with a fem!Clint (cause I love fem!Clint).
> 
> To everyone else (and my commenters), if you have any pairings or Soulmate prompts you'd like me to do just comment!

At one point in time, Clint Barton really hated his life. In fact, till he was about twenty three he hated his life. First he'd been abused, getting the shit beaten out of him by his father every day till he was ten years. The day his father smashed their truck into that tree, killing himself and his mom, was probably one of the greater days of his childhood. Then he'd been in the circus, having ran away from the orphanage with his big brother Barney. They'd stayed there a long time. Long enough for Clint to find out what sort of terrible people their mentors were. Barney left him when he was sixteen, heading for the army. Clint's still not sure if he's alive or dead and he doesn't want to find out. After that he left the circus and became a hired assassin. To everyone he was an exterminator, nothing more. A piece of filth they could toss money at and get to do their dirty work. No one treated him like a person. Besides Barney, who only did it for about twelve years, no one did for the first twenty three years of his life.

At first Clint didn't think it had affected him. Being treated like less than a person by everyone. He just thought that was his lot in life. He wasn't meant to be treated like a normal kid or like everyone else. But then one day it hit him. All of it just hit him. Like a truck.

He'd been in a warehouse (cliché as hell and he'd laughed about it when he got in). There were a bunch of guys around him, mafia guys, and one of their higher ups was with them at the front of the room. Basically the guys were to get everyone out of Clint's way and Clint was to kill one of their rivals or whatever. Clint had been bored, having done this a million times, and was joking around. He could do that since the guys all knew they'd never pull this kill off without him. At one point he'd been standing by this big guy and he'd slapped his hand down on the guy's shoulder, saying something about how he was perfectly capable of getting along with the mafia guys (he was known for not working well with goons). The guy had shoved him so hard he'd crashed into a table and down onto the floor. He couldn't remember what the guy said, maybe don't touch me, but he did remember what the guy had called him. Dog.

Granted, not the worst insult in the world. But it was like the last straw or something. Suddenly twenty three years worth of being hated, of being treated as less than human, of shitty living came crashing down on him. And he realized just how fucking pathetic and sad and lonely and so damn  _empty_  he was. He didn't show it though. No, if there was one thing his childhood and Barney had taught him it was no to show weakness in front of people who would just love to kill you with it (or kill you in general). So he got up laughing and joked that maybe this time it'd be the goons that have to promise to play nice with  _him_. He'd pointed an arrow at the big guy and told him he better watch it, he may just have two targets after this if he wasn't careful (a smile on his face the entire time, damn he'd looked heartless), but he hadn't meant it. He hadn't cared.

When he left that place he didn't go back. He never even completed the job, just took off. They started hunting him the next day, he knew they did, but they never found him. He didn't know how. After leaving he just started walking the city and he never stopped. Never went back to his apartment, nothing. Not until he thought he was going to pass out standing and his stomach was growling so loud people he passed by could hear it. That was when he finally stopped. He went to a fast food joint, bought a burger with the last of his cash, and sat down in the farthest booth from the door so he wouldn't be cold. When he was done eating he stared down at the wrapper and waited either for death, exhaustion to overtake him, or for someone to kick him out.

That was when he'd met him. The guy had slid into his booth and Clint had looked up at him, expecting to find the big guy from the other day or another assassin (he'd worked with a few of them, knew the faces and the names). He hadn't been expecting the clean cut guy in the suit with a perfectly unreadable expression. Clint had glared at him and said "Who the fuck are you?" There'd been no real heat in his voice though. Nothing. He was just too tired. Of moving, of life, of everything. He was just too tired.

The guy had stiffened noticeably at Clint's words and he'd instantly knew something was wrong. This guy…there was something about him. Something that said he didn't show emotions unless he was really caught off guard. Clint had no clue what he could have possibly done though to warrant a reaction. Not until the guy carefully, with perfect easy movements, pulled back the cuff of his right sleeve and said "Language, Clint." Clint stared down at the Words on the man's wrists slowly turning red as warmth spread through the Words on his own wrist. And his heart stopped.

Clint hadn't thought about Words or Soulmates in a very long time at that point. But afterwards he thought about it every day. Even when Loki had him under his control a part of him had still been thinking about the man. About Phil Coulson. About his Soulmate who had saved his life just by showing up. He'd almost lost him. Loki had almost taken him away from him. But they'd saved him. Shield had brought him back and now Clint was sitting with him in Avengers Tower, cuddling with him on the couch and watching a stupid romcom they both loved.

Clint pulled Phil's hand up to his mouth and kissed his Words. He chuckled at them now, finding them funny now that he was happy. His first words he'd ever spoken to his Soulmate and they'd been rude. God he was awful. "You know, I'm never letting you go." He said, looking up at his Soulmate and smiling.

Phil smiled back. A small smile but so filled with love that it made Clint beam with happiness. "Same goes for you, Barton. Next time you feel like getting possessed by a god, don't." Phil told him, pulling him even closer to him.

"Don't call me Barton, asshole." Clint said, snuggling closer to his Soulmate.

"Language, Clint." Clint smiled.

Tony suddenly dropped down on the other end of the couch, nearly landing on their feet. There was a bowl of popcorn in his lap and some of it went flying when he landed. "You two are disgusting. Turn up the volume." He said before tossing a piece of popcorn in his mouth.

Phil told Tony to shut up as Steve and Natasha came wandering into the room. Steve took a seat on the chair near Tony while Natasha plopped down in front of Phil and Clint. She smiled at them both, made a comment about Tony being an idiot, and stole a fistful of popcorn from the genius. Bruce and Thor came in less than two seconds later, Bruce trying to explain to Thor how cars worked. They settled down on the other couch and soon the room was filled with conversations. Clint couldn't hear the TV anymore but he didn't care. He just smiled and listened to his family and his Soulmate talk about anything and everything.

At one point in time, Clint Barton really hated his life. But he didn't anymore and it was great.


	8. Loki/Toni movie

Loki had never been an average Asgardian, even before he'd found out he wasn't one at all. He'd used magic, he didn't seek out glory, and he didn't believe in Soulmates. Most everyone did and whenever it was mentioned Loki always got bombarded with questions as to why he could think it. His own parents were Soulmates and they had a beautiful marriage! How could he not believe in Soulmates?! Loki never told them. He didn't remember all of the reasons he'd told others over the years but he knew he'd never said the truth. That he didn't believe in Soulmates because, according to the Words just beneath his right pectoral, his Soulmate was a Midgardian. Even before his fall from grace he'd thought of Midgardians as weak unevolved creatures so there was no way his Soulmate could be one of them. And since it simply couldn't be true, Soulmates could not possibly be real.

Which was exactly why when Loki found his supposed Soulmate on Midgard, he decided not to say a word in response to her until the right moment. It was perfect, he decided. The woman he was supposedly meant to be with was what the Midgardians considered a genius and she was so incredibly flawed. He hated her for making his Words  **Make your move, Reindeer Games**  (he still did not understand what "Reindeer Games" meant) but he was also intrigued by her. She was confident (or pretended to be), always had a comeback, and was as impressive a warrior as Lady Sif. Perhaps even better as the woman had managed to turn her armor into a weapon and held her own against Thor so much better than Sif ever could. He decided, watching her fight, that it would be very interesting to see her reaction when he finally spoke to her.

He did it at her tower. At the building with her name on it, burning brightly for all of Midgard to see. Just before his crowning victory. He smiled at her and said "Please tell me you're going to appeal to my humanity."

Toni faltered a second but continued walking before Loki could notice and told him she was planning on threatening him instead. He seemed amused. Smug fucking bastard. He'd known the whole time hadn't he? That they were supposedly Soulmates. That's why he'd never said a word to her. Why he'd been so careful to only speak to Cap on the jet and not her. Why his eyes had stayed glued on her for just a second too long after she'd spoken before darting to the super soldier. Toni could have laughed. She almost did too. It was so damn fitting that her Soulmate would be a crazy god trying to take over the world. She made sure to grab a drink while she was talking to him. After this revelation, she definitely needed it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one sucked.


	9. Loki/Toni

Toni knew going to the party was a dumb idea. Thor and his friends (who she'd jokingly nicknamed the Asgardians because they were Scandinavian and could consume alcohol like  _gods_ ) always threw the wildest parties. The drinks were always ridiculously good (which was saying something coming from Toni since she'd consumed nearly every alcohol known to man) and the parties lasted  _forever_. Toni couldn't even survive half the night most of the time, getting too drunk too quickly since she refused to consume the drinks the Asgardians gave her at a slower rate than she'd consume her own hard liquor. It was the same that night. By the time two in the morning rolled around she was drunk off her ass, almost too much to stand.

She realized pretty quickly, after almost falling over, that she needed to get out of there. She liked the Asgardians for the most part and she loved Thor but a couple of his friends were kind of creepy and it was best she wasn't in their house while she was this drunk. So she started looking for someone to take her home. Bruce, Rhodey, and Pepper were instantly out seeing as none of them had come with her this time. Natasha was out and Clint were out seeing as Nat was currently busy taking Clint home (he was about as bad as Toni). Thor was out too, she didn't want to take him away from the story telling session he was giving (everyone always hung on his every word when he was talking about sports). The only person she could think of who could take her and who she trusted to take her was Steve but she couldn't find him. She wasn't sure if he'd just gone home already or if she just kept missing him but no matter the reason she couldn't find him. Which meant she either had to walk home herself or find a place where she could sleep at least some of her drunken haze off. She decided to do the latter, knowing full well walking home alone was dangerous even without being drunk. So she pulled her personal key to Thor's room out of her pocket and started up the stairs.

Thor's room was the closest to the stairs so her trip wasn't long. She stumbled over the hallway rug getting there and she frowned down at it with distaste but other than that she got to the door without any problems. She was so glad Thor had given her a key. Sooo glad. One because it showed he trusted her enough to give her access to his bedroom any time she wanted and two because it gave her a safe place to go when she couldn't go anywhere else. No one dared enter Thor's room without permission or a key so it was pretty damn safe. Toni smiled as she got the door open and she let out a relieved sigh when it was closed again behind her. She quickly locked it before making her way across the room and collapsing on the nearest bed. She didn't notice the fact that it was the wrong bed, this one covered in green sheets instead of Thor's red and blue. If she had noticed she wouldn't have cared. She was too damn drunk to care.

A minute later and she was oh so close to passing out when she heard the door unlock. She didn't even bother to look up. No one without a key could be coming in and she trusted everyone who had a key. She listened to them and smiled slightly when she heard them pause halfway into the room, more than likely because they'd spotted her.

Loki stopped halfway through the door when he saw the girl laying on his bed. Anger immediately flared up inside him and his grip on his key became deadly tight. He'd been fine with Thor giving his friends keys to their room and he'd been fine every time one of them had come in, needing a place to sleep and finding it on Thor's bed, but he was not fine with this. He was not fine with some girl (one he'd never even seen before, which was strange really seeing as he thought he knew all of Thor's friends) using his bed to sleep off the copious amount of alcohol she'd consumed. Thor had assured him none of his friends would disturb him or his things when they came in so  _why_  was this girl sleeping on his bed?

He took a deep breath. Perhaps this wasn't Thor's fault. Actually, more than likely it wasn't. Thor was rude to him sometimes but he would not place a drunken girl on his bed. The girl must have come stumbling in on her own and picked the wrong bed. Okay. He could be calm about this now. It wasn't Thor's fault (he hadn't even thrown this party, Fandral had). It was the girl's. He could be mad at a stranger. He quickly put on an annoyed but unimpressed expression before entering the room fully, shutting the door behind him (and locking it), and walking across the room to the foot of his bed. He stared down at the girl and she moved a little so that she could see him. He saw surprise appear in her eyes but it was dulled by the fact that she was drunk and tired. She eyed him up and down for a second, taking him in, before turning away. Loki was a little surprised. The drunk people he'd encountered never had the sense of mind to actually analyze him before turning away. He ignored it though to chastise her.

"I don't know who you are but I want you out of my bed immediately." He told her, giving her the sternest most intimidating look he could manage. She couldn't see it of course but he'd been told that sight wasn't really a necessity when it came to his looks. Apparently people could just  _feel_ him glaring at them and it gave the same affect seeing the glare would.

Toni could feel him glaring but she didn't react. She'd had much more intimidating glares leveled at her and she hadn't reacted to them at all. She did react though to the sudden warmth at the small of her back. Her Words. Her freaking Words. Oh my god. A giggle escaped her and she tried to stifle it but it didn't work. Soon she was laughing into one of the (absolutely  _amazingly_  soft) pillows, the sound only slightly muffled since she was mainly just covering her eyes. Oh man this was priceless. She'd found her Soulmate and she was drunk off her ass. Well, not as much anymore. Surprisingly, meeting the guy the universe supposedly wanted you to be with was a great way to sober up. After a moment she realized the guy (her Soulmate, oh gosh she was going to start crying) was glaring a hole in her head and wanted an answer so she quickly stopped laughing, propped herself up on his pillows, and gave him a big smile. "I know exactly who you are but I am not getting out of your bed." She told him before falling back completely onto his pillows, getting comfortable. This was going to be fun.

Loki felt as if the world had screeched to a stop by running into a brick wall. Warmth spread through his Words and he felt like slamming his head in a car door. This girl, this drunk friend of Thor's who had stolen his bed in a daze, was his Soulmate. Well.

Damn.


	10. Bruce/Natasha

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> SPOILER WARNING: This chapter has a bit to do with Age of Ultron. I wrote it so it can be read without having watched Age of Ultron (I think) but I'm not entirely sure I managed it so just in case, if you haven't seen the movie don't read till you have.
> 
> Okay now for replies!!!
> 
> efficaceous, hope you like this chapter :) Feel free to request more and if you want to see a Bruce and Natasha one that isn't movie related go ahead and tell me, I'll think of something or you could give me a prompt, whichever.
> 
> SolitaryStreetlight, hi! I actually have a big fic planned for Steve and Tony (girl Toni, hope you don't mind) so yeah if you're interested in reading that one I'll tell you when it's done. Ummm, do you have any idea for a Steve and Tony one? I've got a bunch of little fics (without the Soulmate element) planned so I'm having a bit of a hard time thinking of one for them.
> 
> Sebille, glad you liked my shorts! But um I feel a little insulted by you telling me that I shouldn't feel the need to genderbend characters. Obviously I have no problem writing slash and I did not just "switch their genitals so that it works" when I wrote the genderbent characters. I have no problem with slash. I just like to explore characters and turning a character into the opposite gender is a great way to play with their personalities and experiences. I write genderbent characters because how a person interacts with one gender is different from how they interact with another. I really appreciate the praise dude but seriously I did not write genderbent characters so that they "fit into my social norm." Which, also, excuse you how would you know if that is my social norm or not? That's just rude. Do not assume things about people. Also, do you think a gay person can't write about a straight couple or something? (I'm not gay, I'm asexual, but that's how you made it sound.) Anyways, thank you for reading but I found your comment a little rude.

Bruce knew. Of course he knew. How could he not? He'd studied the Words wrapped around his leg a hundred times, wondering what they meant for the longest time. He'd figured it out after…after the incident that got him saddled with the Hul—Other Guy. It meant he had gone into hiding and he was going to meet his Soulmate because someone found him. And it also meant that his Soulmate was apart of some government agency that wanted to use him. Bruce laughed when he figured that out. Hysterically. Literally, it sounded as if he'd lost his mind. Which maybe he had. He still wasn't sure about that.

He didn't think Natasha knew. She never let on that she did, even after he'd replied to her teasing. (He hadn't said a word about her saying his Words, unsure if somehow the people she was working with had known his Words and were trying to manipulate him.) He wondered, constantly, why she hadn't said anything. And then he found out. She had no Words. None at all. He'd seen the faint outline of a scar on her leg (small, easy to cover with makeup) and he'd known. It wasn't the right size scar, it should have been bigger, but Bruce was pretty damn sure there were scientists out there that could shrink a scar. He was one of them. He knew that she was…that they were….

He would never say anything. Natasha was…Natasha was a hero. All she wanted to do was be good. To help people. To right the wrongs she'd made. No matter what she thought, she wasn't a monster. Bruce was. He knew he was. Sure the Other Guy was getting better. Sure he was trying to help people. But he was still dangerous. Eventually he would get too out of control and hurt someone. He would destroy everything Bruce was trying to build. Because that was who the Hul— _Other Guy_  was. The destruction to his creation. He messed everything up. And he was a monster. How could he not be? Natasha didn't deserve to get saddled with him for the rest of her life. The universe had already been so cruel to her, why would it go and make her  _his_  Soulmate? No, no he would never say anything. She was one thing he wouldn't let the Other Guy break.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Remember people, requests are welcome!


	11. Steve/Natasha

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Replies!!!
> 
> Snugglybug, I'm glad you liked it :) I'm definitely going to continue with it but I'm not sure when. I've got most of the plot thought out though so don't worry, it's coming!
> 
> GgAvenger, thanks! I tried to make it longer but, and I have to be honest, I'm not a massive fan of Bruce and Natasha. I like the pairing but it's sort of been ruined for me a bit. And your wish is my command! I will have it up as soon as possible.
> 
> silver_drip, thank you for all the reviews :) And for all the suggestions! Just a couple of questions though, do you want all of your suggestions to be frostiron? Or can I use whatever pairing I want (though I've got frostiron ideas for nearly all of them)? And for your fourth suggestion, if not all of them are frostiron, is this one a Thorki (that's Thor and Loki's ship name right?) request? I can write either. And one last question (sorry, I feel like I'm being rude I just want to make sure I write what you want since you were kind enough to give me ideas). The first one, the "You're not Thor" one, is that from something? I feel like it may be but I'm not sure. If it isn't, don't worry, I've got an idea for it. Thank you again for all the suggestions!

Once upon a time, Steve dreamed of his Soulmate. Dreamed of meeting them, getting married, and starting a family. He never once dreamed that he would meet his Soulmate and  _not_  get married to them. Why would he? In his day everyone married their Soulmate. If you met them people expected to hear a wedding announcement within the week. It didn't always turn out great, some Soulmates just weren't meant to marry, but it was expected and most chose to follow the social norm rather than be ostracized by everyone else.

It was different in the twenty first century though. Steve found that out not even a week after he'd been woken up from the ice. Soulmates didn't have to get married to each other anymore, they could just be a part of each other's lives. He didn't really care though. Not at first. Because despite the fact that his Words were still black (meaning his Soulmate was still out there, not dead in the least), he didn't want to meet them. Not when he felt like…Not when he was wondering what was the point of him even being  _alive_. Everyone he cared about, everyone he ever loved, was dead or close to death. Peggy, the woman he'd been convinced he was in love with despite not being his Soulmate, had gotten married and was suffering from Alzheimer's. The world he'd known, the world he'd grown up and survived in, was gone. He didn't feel right. He felt…off. Like he wasn't supposed to be there at all. And whoever his Soulmate was didn't deserve having to put up with him when he was this messed up.

Unfortunately for Steve, the universe decided that he was going to meet his Soulmate whether he liked it or not. He didn't even realize he'd met her though, not until he'd had to change to go fight Loki in Germany. That's when he noticed the Word on his ankle,  **Hi** , was red. He'd felt like his world had crashed down around him again. He couldn't breathe. He forced himself to move though. To get dressed. Because getting Loki was a whole lot bigger than him meeting his Soulmate. And he knew exactly who it was too. Natasha Romanoff. The only person who had said hi to him as their first words to him in the past twenty four hours. As he changed he wondered if she knew already but then he realized she probably didn't. The first thing he'd said to her was "ma'am." Not exactly an uncommon phrase. She probably hadn't noticed.

On the jet though he knew she had. She'd changed and there was no way she hadn't seen the change in her Words. From what he could tell, she noticed everything. So she knew. But she didn't say anything. Not a word. And it worried him. Was she upset? Did she not want him to be her Soulmate? Not that he would really mind if that was true. He wouldn't want to be his Soulmate. He was actually very grateful she didn't say anything. He didn't really feel up to hearing about how she didn't want him. Besides, there were much more important things to focus on. And that was the case up until after the battle in New York. Sure Loki was still on earth, Tony and Bruce needed a little time to build a device that would properly harness the Tesseract and send the gods back, but other than that they were safe. Loki had given up, truly this time, and they could relax a little. Enough, apparently, for Natasha to talk to him about them being Soulmates. She'd come to his apartment and her first words when he'd opened the door were "So Cap, when were you planning on telling me we were Soulmates?" She'd been smirking, teasing him.

Steve had been terrified to talk to her but he hadn't really had a choice. She'd just strolled on in, asking in a deadpan but joking voice "You gonna let me in?" before she sidled past him. At first he hadn't known what to say and he just watched her sit down at the little table in his apartment, looking completely calm and collected. Like this wasn't hugely important and she was just dropping in for a friendly visit. He watched her eyes roam over his things, taking it all in, and finally he found his voice. He started to talk, to try and explain that he wasn't ready for commitment because he wasn't in a good place, but he never got past saying her name. Because she cut in by asking him if he knew she wasn't the marrying type. He'd been stunned silent. When she went on to say she wasn't one to let anything, even the universe, decide who she was supposed to love he was even more shocked. By the time she stopped talking, after telling him she was sorry but marriage was out of the question and possibly love too, he was sure he'd never be so surprised again.

When she was done talking, Steve wasn't entirely sure what to say. He never seemed to be sure of what to say anymore. He wanted to tell her how  _relieved_ he was but he didn't think he could put it into words. So he finally just told her that he was perfectly fine with that. He didn't want marriage anymore, he didn't think, and he was in no way ready to love someone again. Not after Peggy. Natasha had been pleasantly surprised. Or at least she appeared to be, she was hard to read.

They'd gone for coffee a few weeks later. And they'd been going for coffee once a week since then. It wasn't really necessarily though, seeing as they all moved into what became Avengers Tower soon after the battle. At first it was a little awkward, at least for Steve. He wasn't sure how he was supposed to act with Natasha. Try and see if they could fall in love? Or keep his distance? He didn't know. Luckily, Natasha seemed to. She treated him like a teammate and a potential friend and that just felt incredibly right. Having her as a friend. A partner. Someone he could joke around with and still count on in the middle of a fight. And he never wanted anything more than that. Because just having her around, just being friends with her, was enough. And he had to admit, he loved watching her fall in love with Bruce. It made him so happy to see her happy. His Soulmate.

It turned out, Natasha had been wrong about love possibly being off the table. They did love each other. They just weren't  _in_  love.

Steve still dreamed of his Soulmate but now the dreams were different. He didn't want to marry her, never even gave it a second thought. He did still dream about starting a family but when he thought about it now it was him and Natasha living in the same house but with families of their own. They'd be one big family but they wouldn't be related. Steve smiled. Sure it wasn't the forties lifestyle he'd once wanted but it was what he wanted now. And he had to admit, he liked it a lot better.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one wasn't that great but I wanted to write Platonic Soulmates and since I love them as bros I decided to use them.


	12. Tony/Steve

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know nothing about art openings. Please ignore any inaccuracies and pretend to be happy I started writing these again.

Steve took a drink of the champagne in his hand and wondered what would happen if he took the glass and threw it at a wall. Probably not a lot, people would probably go quite and scared and look at him like he was insane, but at least then  _something_  interesting would be happening. He was at an art opening and several of his pieces were being shown off and he was insanely happy about that but…he'd thought it'd be more exciting than this. All it was really was a bunch of rich people wandering around, mumbling things and looking incredibly stuck up.

At least they liked his art, or seemed to anyways. They even liked what the gallery owner had called his "controversial piece." It was a drawing of a man smudging, wiping away, his Words on the back of his shoulder. Steve had come up with the idea on a bad day. Back before Bucky was found alive and it was just him, mourning the loss of his best friend and the woman he'd loved. He'd been having a hard time and he'd stopped believing in Soulmates, in his Words, for a while. Mainly because he didn't think anything could make him happy anymore, not even his Soulmate, and he didn't want anything to do with  _anything_  that would remind him of when he was happy. He was better now, believed he could be happy again, and, if he was being honest, he had never wanted to think about his picture again but Bucky had found it and insisted he show it off. He said it was too good to keep locked up and that Steve might as well make some money off his suffering. Steve was actually kind of glad he'd listened to Bucky. From what he could tell, it was his most popular piece.

A guy was standing in front of it now. Steve watched him out of the corner of his eye, still drinking and still wondering if he could possibly liven everything up. He got curious though when he saw the man smile amusedly, like he was trying not to laugh, and came over. "Find something funny?" He asked casually. As if he could be casual. Bucky, who was watching him from where he was talking to Sam by another art piece, felt like facepalming. He hoped to God Steve wasn't trying to hit on the guy because if he was it was  _painfully_  obvious.

Tony Stark stiffened slightly at the words but relaxed again a second later. He'd heard them a few times in his life, surely this was just another—. Oh. Well. Huh. Well okay, he could deal with this. He glanced over at the man who'd spoken to him and his smile widened a bit. He'd gotten lucky. His Soulmate was hot. "This picture, handsome." He said as charmingly as he could without looking over at him.

Steve chocked on his drink.

Tony started laughing. "Oh my God,  _your face_. Your face! You should have seen it!" He laughed as his Soulmate coughed, trying to clear his throat of the liquid he'd inhaled. It was pretty funny but Tony did feel a little bad. It was his fault the guy was choking after all. "You okay? Do I need to hit you on the back or something? I think I might break my hand but hey!" He asked, hiding his concern with a joking voice and a big grin.

"I'm fine." Steve managed to say after a moment. He held up a hand towards Bucky who he'd seen coming over out of the corner of his eye. The man beside him (his Soulmate) followed his arm and eyed Bucky with interest.

"That your boyfriend? He seems concerned." Tony asked curiously. Thinking lines appeared between his eyebrows as he looked at the dark haired man glaring back at him. What if it  _was_  his boyfriend? Tony doubted he would care since he didn't even know the blonde (Soulmate or not, they'd just met) but he wondered how that would affect the situation.

Steve shook his head quickly. "That's my best friend, Bucky. He's uh…He's a little overprotective." He admitted awkwardly. The darker haired man nodded slightly, eyes still fixed on Bucky in an interested sort of way. Like he was trying to read him. Which Bucky hated. Steve glanced between the two of them and decided he had to draw the dark haired man's attention to something else because, if he didn't, Bucky was going to snap. "So why do you find it funny?" He asked, gesturing back to his picture.

"Hm?" Tony hummed out, acting as if he hadn't been paying attention to the blonde's every move along with the brunette's. He flashed the brunette a winning smile before turning back to the blonde. "Oh, I just enjoy it when someone doubts the whole Soulmate thing. No offense." He added that last bit quickly, trying haphazardly not to offend the man, before taking a drink from the champagne in his hand. He'd almost forgotten about it. He didn't really drink in public anymore.

Steve smiled slightly. It was nice to know his Soulmate wasn't a liar. Or, at the very least, wasn't concerned with keeping his opinions to himself to please others. That could very well be a bad thing, depending on his opinions, but for now it was good. "None taken." He assured the other man. The other man who was quite a few inches shorter than him and who Steve had to look down at to meet his eyes. "So what do you think of the artist? Do you like him or just the picture?" He inquired curiously. He considered, briefly, telling the man  _he_  was the artist but decided against it. It'd be interesting to get an honest opinion from the man.

Tony smirked, so he was playing that game huh? Very well, time to surprise him. "You're a very good artist, Mister Rogers. Which, by the way, I hope you don't like sweaters because if you do I'm leaving now." He informed the other man, still casually observing the gorgeous artwork Steve Rogers had created. He'd have to buy some of his work. It'd liven up the mansion and he was sure Pepper would love it. "You know, I can't really read the Words in this picture. I wonder, are they yours and you didn't want anyone to know?" His eyes traced the smudged T on the drawn man's shoulder. Really, it wouldn't be surprising if Steve had decided to forsake Soulmates. He didn't think anyone would create something like this if they didn't at some point doubt the universe and its decisions.

Steve blinked at the man. He…He knew who he was. He knew who he was the  _entire time_. And he didn't say anything! Steve didn't know whether to smile or be annoyed. "You could have said something." He told the shorter man, a slightly annoyed (but non heated) look on his face. The other man just laughed though, throwing his head back slightly as he did. Steve shook his head at him and took another drink of his champagne. It…It really didn't taste good. "I would kill for something else to drink right now. And as for the Words, I'm not telling you. You'll just have to figure it out." He said, looking down at the glass in his hand and scrunching his nose at it. Next time he had one of these things, he was going to get Bucky to sneak in a flask of soda or something.

"Tell you what." The shorter man said, suddenly enough and just loudly enough for Steve to know that he was about to suggest something. He turned away from Steve's art as he spoke, his champagne sloshing almost out of his glass. "How 'bout after this I take you to eat somewhere? There's this place that makes the best burgers. It'll give me a chance to figure out your art,  _Mister Rogers_." Tony proposed, his expression completely serious. He was dead serious of course, he really did want to take Steve out and get to know him better, but of course Steve wasn't sure if he was truly serious or not. It didn't help that after Tony blinked his seriousness disappeared, replaced with a slightly stunned and disgusted expression. "Never thought I'd be saying that name like that. New low, Tony. New low." He said to himself.

Steve perked up. So his name was Tony? "Burgers huh?" He repeated, smiling slightly. That  _did_ sound pretty good and he  _did_  want to talk more to this man. His Soulmate. Tony. "Sounds good. I'll just have to tell my friends. Pretty sure Bucky'll try to kill you if he thinks you're kidnapping me." He told him.

Tony's smile was completely genuine. Pepper was going to be thrilled when he told her. Which he'd have to do soon or she was going to kill him for going missing for a couple of hours. He loved his PA but God she could be terrifying when he just went off schedule without so much as a warning. "Alright. See you in a little while, blondie." He told his Soulmate before sauntering off, pulling his phone out as he did.

He'd barely made it six steps before Steve called after him, voice low to be polite to everyone else in the room but loud enough for Tony not to miss. "What? I don't get a last name?" The bigger blonder man asked playfully, still smiling. Tony had to admit, he liked that smile.

"Stark." He called back without a second thought. He glanced back in time to catch Steve's surprised expression and walked off happily, chuckling slightly as he did. He quickly sent a text to Pepper.

**Change of plans. Got a date.**

He thought it over and quickly sent another text after it.

**With my Soulmate.**


	13. Tony/Loki

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the website I used.  
> http://morsecode.scphillips.com/translator.html

Loki didn't particularly enjoy the Political Science class he was taking but there were some definite upsides. The teacher was always late so he never had to rush. He knew most of it anyways (taking the class was simply a formality, something his parents were making him and his brother take) so he rarely had to pay attention and the homework was easy. Thor had the later class so that he wouldn't be tempted to convince Loki to just tape the class for him while he skipped. Oh! And there was one upside that topped  _everything_  else.

His Soulmate was in his class.

Tony Stark, son of a multibillionaire/genius and a renowned genius himself. Brains were very important, in Loki's opinion, and he was very glad his Soulmate was someone who could actually keep up with him. And he was very handsome, a definite plus. A little on the short size but Loki was fine with that. Especially since Tony somehow always managed to see like he was the tallest man in the room. Even when he was sitting. There was just a certain air about him. Loki was, pathetically,  _enraptured_. And that's why he hadn't said a word to him yet. Don't judge. He was trying to figure out a perfect response. But how was he supposed to top  _Morse Code_?

Tony Stark never opened his mouth in class, not even to answer a question, but he never shut up. All through class he would tap Morse Code with his pencil on the side of his book, driving everyone but Loki, who sat right by him, completely insane. And one day Tony had looked at Loki and tapped out the exact beautiful dark pattern of dots and dashes that covered Loki's chest.

**-.- - ..- / -.- -. - .- -..- / -.- - ..- / .- .-. . / - ... . / ... - - - . ... - / .-. . .-. ... - -. / .. -. / - ... .. ... / -.-. .-.. .- ... ... .-.-.-**

Loki hadn't reacted but he'd known exactly what it meant. After extensive research (he'd wanted to know everything about people like him, people with Words that weren't actually words) he'd realized his Words were Morse Code and studied it to death. So by the time Tony tapped them out, he was fluent. His fingers had itched to tap a message back but he'd stopped himself. Because it had to be  _perfect_. Loki only ever put forth his full effort on matters this important.

But what was he supposed to say?! What could he do that was even remotely as interesting as Morse Code? And it had to be clever because Tony's message had been most decidedly not. Inventively said, yes, but casual, almost offhanded. Flattering though. (Loki was trying, and failing, to pretend that Tony's message hadn't left him completely flustered by pretending they hadn't been all that great.) Maybe trying to figure it out during their shared class wasn't a great idea though because Tony was  _distracting_. Especially when he would stop staring right at Loki and everything he was tapping out had to do with him. And the messages were getting dirtier by the minute which made it  _very hard_ for Loki to pay attention to his problem and even harder to pretend he didn't understand. Tony was smiling just slightly, obviously delighting in the way he made Loki squirm but probably also enjoying thinking that Loki didn't know he was saying downright  _filthy_  things to him.

Finally, Loki couldn't take it. He reached over and snatched the pencil from Tony's hand, earning a raised eyebrow and a look that said the other boy was ready to punch him if necessary. There were a few breaths of relief from the others around them but they quickly turned to groans when Loki started tapping himself.

**.. / .-. . .- .-.. .-.. -.- / .-.. .. -.- . / -.- - ..- .-. / ... .- -. -.. ... .-.-.-**

It wasn't very inventive but it did the job. Tony turned steadily redder as Loki tapped the pencil and when he was done he choked on nothing. Loud enough for the teacher to hear him. "Mister Stark, is there a problem?" The man asked, giving Tony a look he probably got a lot from people. That annoyed, give-me-a-reason, look. Loki smiled to himself as he looked down at his book, trying and failing to appear innocent. Tony shot Loki a glare before turning to the teacher and shaking his head. That was something Loki really wanted to understand. Why wouldn't he speak in this class? Everyone he'd ever asked about Tony (including Thor who was apparently decent enough friends with him) said he never shut up in other classes. "Mister Stark?" The teacher said expectantly, obviously trying to force him to talk.

Loki decided to save him. This was his fault after all. "My apologies, sir. I said something rather unbecoming." He said, offering as little of an explanation as possible.

It worked well enough and class resumed. Loki carefully placed Tony's pencil back beside him but Tony didn't touch it. He just stared at Loki, a million things in his eyes. Soon enough class ended and Loki started gathering his things up, now resigned to pretend that Tony's lack of response didn't make his stomach twist. But then Tony finally spoke. "How long did you know?" He had a nice voice. It had an attention grabbing sort of quality that reminded Loki of the fact that Tony was very used to speaking to reporters.

"A while." Loki answered vaguely, shrugging just slightly. He almost had all his things together. He just needed to find his pen…

.-.. - - -.- .. -. -. / ..-. - .-. / - ... .. ... ..-..

Loki stared at his pen in Tony's hand a moment before meeting his eyes. He was surprised to find him smiling. "So, you like my hands huh?" He teased, looking pleased.

A delighted sly smile appeared on Loki's face. He leaned forward slowly and gently took the pen from Tony's hand, making sure to run his fingers against Tony's. He quickly tapped out a message before making his way to the door.

-. . - / -.-. - ..-. ..-. . . / .- .. - ... / - . / .- -. -.. / -.- - ..- / - .. -. ... - / ... . . / .- ..- ... - / ... - .- / - ..- -.-. ... / .. / .-.. .. -.- . / - ... . - .-.-.-

Tony followed him immediately.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry I've been gone. I got a little engrossed in the Mad Max Fandom.


	14. Tony/Natasha

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know it's been forever and I'm sorry! But here you go! And you should be getting more either really late tonight or tomorrow. Probably tomorrow.

“Tasha? Hey, Tasha?” Clint called out as he cautiously approached the training room. He peered his head around the corner and flinched when he saw a slim knife bury itself hilt deep into a training dummy’s head. “Hey Nat.” He called out in a too sweet singsong voice, hoping to maybe lighten her mood by playing at being scared. He’d never been very scared of Natasha, even when he was hunting her down to kill her, so it was usually funny when he acted like he was. But not this time. This time something was seriously incredibly wrong. Fury wouldn’t even tell him what had happened, just called him in to come deal with her. Make sure she didn't go out and kill anybody. Clint winced in sympathy when another knife flew and hit right where a regular man’s special area would be. God, why did the training dummies have to be realistic? Slowly, he started towards his best friend, only wary because she was still throwing knives at things and he didn't want her hand to slip. “So I’m guessing something went wrong with Stark today.” He said as he strode over.

Natasha hesitated at his words, the knife in her hand dropping just slightly as her grip became a little less sure. Slowly, she fell into a more relaxed pose and placed the knives on the table beside her. She started rolling up her sleeve as he drew closer, eyes determined and mouth frowning. When her sleeve was all the way up, Clint froze. And stared with her at the Words encircling her arm like a vice. Like a snake.

“What’s your name, lady?”

Clint’s mouth fell open. The last time he’d seen those words they’d been black. Ink black. Black as Phil Coulson’s soul when he hadn't had breakfast yet. Now they were a startling, shocking, oh-shit-fuck, _red_.

“Who?” Clint practically gasped out in his shock. Not that he thought it was surprising that Natasha had met her Soulmate, it was inevitable after all, but it was obviously someone terrible. The look Natasha gave him said it all. Stark. Her Soulmate, the Black Widow’s Soulmate, his Natasha’s Soulmate, was Tony freaking Stark. Oh God. He didn't know who to feel sorry for. “Okay, now I get the knives.” He joked weakly, eyes still blown wide. Natasha nearly smiled. Then she picked up another knife and threw it at the dummy. The dummy that Clint only just realized she’d painted very Stark like facial hair onto.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I know this wasn't exactly what was requested but the Natasha and Tony ship is the hardest ship for me to write. I love it and I think it could be interesting if written properly but it's really hard for me to write it! Hopefully it turned out alright.
> 
> By the way, I don't think I've said this but all of my work is unbetaed. (Or is it spelt unbetad?) Just letting you know.
> 
> Also, I posted a new one shot. It's Spray Paint and ASL if you want to look at it. It's sort of Clintasha but it can be looked at as them just being friends. You'll get it if you read it.
> 
> Another announcement (last one, I promise), if any of you are reading my Walking Dead fics I promise I'm still working on them. I just haven't been very hyped to write them but with the new season in full swing I'm coming back to them. My Sherlock Holmes fic is probably forever on hiatus though, sorry if any of you read that one. Oh and I'm going to post some Hobbit one shots at some point. Don't know when, just know that that fandom has captured me as well finally so yeah I'm working on even more fics. I'm dying.
> 
> Thanks everyone for reading!


	15. Tony/Natasha Dancer AU

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yeah I wrote another Natasha/Tony one. Which I'm going to call this ship Iron Widow cause I'm not inventive enough to come up with anything different.

Tony stared across the room at the gorgeous redhead leaning against the bar. She was in a long black dress that clung to her form, one leg exposed from the slit on the side. Her lips were bright red and so were her nails. She looked amazing. But Tony didn’t really care about that. Well, he did, but it was entirely unimportant next to who she actually was. Natasha Romanoff, one of the best dancers in New York and a rising star. The whole nation, maybe even the world, would soon known her name, Tony was sure of it. But for now she was simply an amazing dancer whose agent, a man named Fury, had advised her to come to this party and spread her name around a little. Tony had to admit it would certainly help her. He knew quite a few of the women in the crowd had seen Miss Romanoff dance and if she charmed them enough they would surely give her a little cash for advertisement or give her name to casting directors or send people to see her dance. She’d already charmed a few of them but now she seemed a little tired. A little ready to go home.

Tony watched her glare down a man who’d obviously just been hitting on her and smiled slightly before taking a long drink from the alcohol in his hand. He wanted to go over to her, compliment her on her dancing, but he wasn’t sure how she’d take react. Besides, he was always wary of speaking to budding stars. More than once a a new star had tried to convince him they were his Soulmate, speaking his Words, which were common knowledge, the second they saw him and then pretending the words he spoke to them in turn were their Words. But…She really was an amazing dancer. And Tony didn't even like ballet! That’s it, he was going to tell her. Downing the rest of his drink, he set out towards the bar. He placed his glass on the counter and ordered another before turning to look at the dancer. She wasn't paying any attention to him but something told him she knew he was looking at her. He took a step closer, opened his mouth to speak, and—

“I swear if you hit on me I’ll break this glass and jam a shard into your side.” Natasha Romanoff said evenly, cooly. With all the patience of a saint and the easiness of someone who was used to making such threats.

Tony felt his heart stutter and he choked on nothing. Warmth started at his shoulder then shot down his arm to his elbow, winding around him as it went. Neatly written script with small spacing turned from black to red. Natasha Romanoff didn’t look at him, probably thinking he’d choked out of shock from her threat. Tony felt at a loss for words. She was his Soulmate. She…She was his…How did this even happen? He could see her arm, there weren't any Words there! Her arm had been exposed in the ballet he’d seen! In pictures no one could even see the hint of her Words! How was she his Soulmate?! The band started playing a song Tony recognized from the last play he’d seen Natasha in and he felt the words he’d been about to speak come back to him as his mind cleared. It didn’t matter if she was his Soulmate. He still wanted to compliment her.

“I was just going to say that I think you’re the best dancer of this generation.” Tony managed to get out, careful not to stumble over any of the words.

Natasha’s eyes shot to his in shock.


	16. Tony/Clint Bar AU

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning, this one sucks. But I had the idea in my head.

Tony wiped his mouth of the last traces of the drink he’d just taken, eyes fixed on the hot guy at the bar. For now he was alone, probably waiting on a friend or two. He had a beer in front of him but it was barely touched. Probably didn't want to start drinking without his friend. To tell you the truth, Tony didn't really find him all that interesting. Just another hot guy at a bar full of hot guys. But Ty had bet him to go hit on him using the worst pickup line he knew and Tony had to do it. Or else Ty got bragging rights for a week and the rest of his monthly allowance. Which he definitely couldn’t lose because he hadn't paid his rent yet and he didn't know how he was going to get the cash in time to pay it without his allowance. So Tony prayed to whoever was listening to forgive him for what he was about to do and crossed the bar to sit by the hot guy.

Without hesitation, Tony leaned forward and asked “I really hope that these words are your Words because damn I’d love you for a Soulmate.” Tony winced at his own words a little. It was, without a doubt, the worst pickup line he’d ever had the displeasure of hearing and saying. And he really wished the woman who’d said it to him had never done it because seriously it was actually kind of rude.

The guy tensed a moment, anger appearing on his face, and then he jumped, expression melting into one of shock. He turned to look at Tony and Tony had to admit, he had really pretty eyes. Tony went to apologize, started to, but before he got the chance to the guy punched him in the face so hard that he fell out of his chair.

All noise around them stopped and soon the bar was completely silent as people stared in shock at Tony on the floor and the guy getting up from his seat at the bar, expression almost enraged. “Do you have any fucking idea how many times I’ve heard that fucking line you bastard?!” The guy shouted down at Tony, eyes blazing and fists clenched at his sides.

At first, Tony just froze. Then his back filled with warmth that felt like fire to him and he felt embarrassment and shame wash over him. His Words. To his Soulmate. Had been a horrible pickup line. He was the worst human being in the world. Actually, no, Ty was for making him do this. “Would it help if I said I was sorry?” He asked, almost jokingly, and prayed once again but this time that his Soulmate wouldn’t kick his ass all over the bar. Cause Tony would let him if he decided to.

For a second the guy just fumed. Then he reached down and hauled Tony to his feet by his shirt. Tony came up willingly, only grabbing the guy’s arm briefly when he felt like he was going to lose his balance and fall again. The guy stared at him for a minute when he was standing, eyes darting over his face, before pointing a stern finger at him. “You better make this up to me _big time_ , you got that?” He said, expression dead serious. Tony nodded frantically, took shocked to even try to go for dignified, and let out a small sigh when the guy let go of his shirt. “My name’s Clint Barton. And you can start by buying me a fucking drink you ass.” He ordered him.

“Tony Stark. What’s your poison?”

Later, Ty would laugh his ass off at him as they stumbled back to Tony’s apartment, Tony mumbling about how the ice from his drink didn’t help the swelling in his eye at all. Later, Clint Barton would tell the whole thing to his best friend Natasha and she’d buy him his favorite ice cream on the way back to their dorm.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> To anyone wondering who Ty is, it's Tiberius Stone from some of the comics. I never actually read it but people use him a lot in fics and I've researched him a little. Basically he's an old friend of Tony's who basically everyone agrees was probably like an ex boyfriend. Either way, he was an abusive manipulative dick to Tony.  
> Also, I got an idea from writing this one and am now nursing the idea of writing a full fledged Tony/Clint fic.
> 
> Also, IMPORTANT READ THIS: If anyone would like prompts for things that aren't Soulmate AUs I'm open to taking them.


	17. Clint/Bucky

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am calling this ship WinterHawk cause I have no imagination and no one can stop me.

Clint glared at the sniper on the roof opposite of him. This whole sniper on the roof thing was already a cliché, they didn't need to double it. And he definitely didn't need another assassin botching his job. He needed this cash. He didn't care if the other guy needed it too, he wasn't going to let him take his kill. "Go. Away." He mouthed at him, hoping the other assassin could see his mouth properly through that scope of his.

Apparently he could because the guy held up his middle finger at him.

"Oh fuck you too buddy." Clint mumbled out loud at the guy, only just seeing how the other assassin stiffened a few seconds after he said that. He wondered about that before waving the other guy off again. "Seriously. Go."

It took a few seconds before the other assassin replied but eventually he did, this time with words. Mouthed words but words all the same. "No. Go. Fuck. Yourself." Only years of having to read people's lips made it possible for Clint to understand what he had said. Nothing helped him understand what that smirk meant though.

"I. Need. Money." Clint replied. He had to do it a few times but the other guy eventually got it.

"So. Do. I."

"Fuck. You."

"Maybe. Later."

Clint turned beet red and pulled away from his scope so he didn't have to see the second assassin trying very hard not to laugh out loud and give away their positions. What a dick. And then—

Clint gasped as he felt the Words written on his forearm suddenly warm. Oh no fucking way. He quickly ripped down his sleeve and stared at the now red Words on his arm.

**I am so sorry but I cannot stop laughing.**

Clint looked up in shock. "Seriously? Seriously?!" He mouthed at the other man who only just saw what he was saying before falling over laughing again. Watching him, he couldn't help but start giggling too.

It took them a while to stop laughing and by the time they were gone, they'd missed their target. They had to quickly move to a new position and even then they still ended up missing him. That wasn't their fault though. Clint's old pal Black Widow messed that one up for them, shooting the target herself before they could get the chance to. She blew Clint a kiss before disappearing.

"Should I be jealous?" A voice behind Clint asked after he'd spent six minutes fleeing the area.

He didn't even have to turn to know who was talking to him. "Jealous of what?" He wondered, not even glancing away from the menu he was now looking up at.

"The Black Widow winking at you. Do I have competition or…?" The smile was in his voice.

Clint turned and grinned up at his Soulmate. His tall devilishly handsome Soulmate with a red star on the arm of his jacket. The Winter Soldier. His Soulmate was the Winter Soldier. He let out a laugh. "No need to worry, Frosty. Unless you plan on breaking my heart or something. Widow, she's got this thing about defending my honor." He told him, sounding happier than he had in a while.

The Winter Soldier's smile turned into a grin and he slipped his arm around his Soulmate's shoulders and turned him back towards the menu with the ease of a flirt. "Don't worry Hawkeye, wasn't planning on it. Now, let me buy you lunch. We'll make Widow pay us back later." He joked and the other assassin started laughing.


	18. Clint/Bruce

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I love Hulkeye. I really, really do.

Never let it be said that Clint Barton did things because they were _smart_. He did them either for the thrill of doing them or because he really didn't have any other choice. In this case though, it was a little bit of both. Running from the mob of boys behind him, all desperately wanting to kick his ass, was definitely a necessity but pissing them off in the first place? That'd just been for fun. Stupid asshats had been talking about shit they knew nothing about. Couldn't stand them to begin with; it'd just seemed logical to try and knock them down a peg. He was glad he did, they wouldn't be chasing him if he hadn't, but it was starting to lose its novelty as he sprinted down the alley separating his street from the next, the idiots gaining on him.

Thankfully, there was always an out. For Clint, anyways. His eyes locked on a stack of trashcans lined up against one of the taller parts of the mismatched fencing around them and he made a beeline for it, pouring on what little bit of speed he had left. It leapt on top of them and used them to push himself on top of the fence, knocking them down in the process. They rolled as he leapt from fence to roof, body not missing a beat. He speed across the little garage roof up onto the proper one and then straight across to the next roof, just close enough for him to reach at a good run. He leapt to another roof, laughing, his arms pumping so quickly that he could see his Words on his arm as if he was just holding it up. That's what they'd been making fun of and Clint had put them in their place. And he hadn't even needed to mention their Words! He was just that grea—

His foot slipped as he landed on the third roof, sending him crashing down into the shingles. He managed a grunt before gravity decided to keep screwing him over, pulling him down. He scrambled to stay on the roof, tried swinging his body back on, but there was no stopping it. He fell, landing on his back with a hard thump that left him gasping for air. He arched his back, groaning, rolling slightly on his side. It took a good deal out of him to struggle into a sit, enough so that he didn't even care when he saw a boy, roughly his age, standing at the edge of the fence giving him an unimpressed look.

"That looked like it hurt." Was the boy's only observation, it seemed.

"Yeah well, it feels worse than it looked." Clint immediately snarked back, not realizing till the words were out of his mouth what the other boy had said.

Warmth spread on his arm and he gaped like a fish as he watched his Words slowly bleed into a new color. He looked up, mouth still hanging open, body still arched as the pain faded out. The boy glared at him, his hand angrily clutching at his own Words, hidden beneath long sleeves. "You're an idiot!" Clint flinched, not expecting the near absolute fury that was in the voice. And he didn't expect it when the boy stormed past him, presumably going into his house if the sound of a slamming door was anything to go by.

The noise of the boys who'd chased him grew louder as they got closer. They appeared on the other side of the chainlink fence, yelling like howler monkeys. A few started to climb. Clint blinked owlishly at them, his mind refusing to catch up to the situation. His body knew what to do though, sluggishly but still getting him out of the yard and down the street. Clint noticed and started running again, ignoring the pain only because he had no clue _what the hell just happened?_


End file.
